Police searching for man after North York synagogue vandalized

Toronto police are searching for a man after a North York synagogue was vandalized in a suspected hate-motivated incident early Friday morning.

Officers were called to Bayview Avenue and Fifeshire Road around 3:30 a.m., Toronto police said in a news release.

The suspect damaged the outer glass doors and windows of Kehillat Shaarei Torah Synagogue, before fleeing the area, the news release said.

Police say the suspect was wearing a blue hooded jacket, black pants and black shoes.

Anyone with information is asked to contact investigators or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers.

Rabbi Joe Kanofsky said the incident marks the second time that Kehillat Shaarei Torah Synagogue has been vandalized in four weeks, with similar vandalism happening in late April, he said.

In March, Toronto Police Chief Myron Demkiw said the number of calls reporting hate crimes in the city has surged since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, with more than half of those crimes targeting the Jewish community.

Toronto police released an image of a suspect after a North York synagogue was vandalized early Friday morning. (Toronto Police Service handout)